Ghana - Working and dealing with the Ghanaians
Objectives
The aim of this seminar is to significantly improve the participants’ effectiveness in their professional relationships with the Gabonese, enabling them to be operational right from the start.
At the end of this training, participants will have acquired insights and techniques to:
- Be aware of their own cultural baggage
- Fully understand Gabonese context and the culture
- Analyse possible situations in which misunderstandings may arise and identify ways of communicating
- Reduce stress and misunderstandings
- Decipher and understand Gabonese decision-making and negotiation processes
Programme Outline
Module 1 : Understanding cultural differences
1. Intercultural awareness : the key to success in international business
- Taking stock of one's own cultural baggage
- The basics of effective intercultural management
- Identifying and going beyond cultural stereotypes
2. Key aspects of Ghanaian culture
- A relatively stable member state of the Commonwealth
- The impact of British colonisation
- A multiethnic and tribal society
- A complex political situation
3. The impact of values and behaviour patterns on professional dealings and relationships
- The importance of patriarchal values
- Looking beyond the stereotypes: The role of Ghanaian women
- The huge importance attached to private life
- An intrinsically hierarchical society
- The contrasts between rural and urban life
- The importance of religion
- A haphazard view of time
- Irony and teasing
- A rather fatalistic mindset
4. The Ghanaian corporate world
- A paternalistic company structure
- A high degree of formality
- A tradition of professional comradeship and fraternity
Module 2 : Succeeding in work with the Ghanaians
1. Effective communication with the Ghanaians
- The importance of interpersonal relationships and networking
- The extensive use of gestural and non-verbal communication
- The deceptive ease of explicit communication
- English, dialects, and the selection of an interpreter
2. Adapting your working methods
- Goodwill, an open mind and charisma
- Being firm but fair
- Supervising, explaining and understanding
- Encouraging personal and collective success
- Pitfalls to be avoided
3. Successful meetings and negotiations with the Ghanaians
- Ensuring flexibility and coherence
- Creating a climate of trust
- Socialising outside working hours
- Attitudes to contracts and their implications
4. Final handy tips
- Caution, patience and humility
- Protocol and etiquette
- Social standards, gifts, business cards, dress code
- Sensitive subjects: politics, history, religion
- Humour: a double-edged sword
